Revenge is sweeter than you ever were
by CarlyB10
Summary: He hadn't anticipated finding her wrapped in the arms of another man. She couldn't have hurt him more if she had kicked him in the gut with a pair of steel capped stilettos. Chapter four is up! Minor spoilers, please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

It started off as a one-shot, but I've got a few idea on how to continue, depending on peoples reaction to it. So let me know your thoughts, comments, criticisms and ideas!

I own nothing, obviously. Even the title is from a song, Revenge is sweeter than you ever were, by The Veronicas.

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Blair realised, as she strode across the tarmac, that she was feeling more like herself than she had in a long time. It may have taken three weeks of isolation from everyone other than her father, her fathers' model boyfriend and her best friend Serena (via phone) but finally, FINALLY she felt a little like Blair Waldorf, Queen B again. And _thank God _for that, because she had worried that if she had continued to feel like she had been for much longer, she would have lost the real Blair Waldorf for good, and faded permanently into this lesser version of herself that she had been existing as for the last fortnight.

It had started with Chuck. Didn't it _always _start with Chuck for her? Or would it be more accurate to say that it started _without _Chuck, since it was him not being around that had triggered this feeling in her. She despised herself a little for feeling like this because of _him_, she would admit that. She'd always been good at accepting her shortcomings.

So she arrived in Tuscany and Chuck wasn't there. That didn't really surprise her, since he hadn't been on the plane to Tuscany, but she still felt a pin-prick of disappointment. The pin turned into a knife, and the prick turned into a stab, and Chuck turned into the prick when he sent her a simple text message saying that he couldn't make it and then refused to answer her calls and shut himself off from the world. And so, once Blair had finished crying the tears that she would deny were for him till her dying day, she realised that there was no reason for her to stay in Tuscany and she set off immediately for France.

She had been looking forward to staying with her Dad for a long time, and for the first few days it was nice. Catching up with her Dad and Roman, and being in an entirely new place provided sufficient distraction initially, but as much as Blair loved her Father, there was a limit to a girl and her gay fathers common interests, and Blair found herself with nothing to divert her attention from Chuck. It was as though the whole situation was draining her of her energy.

About a week and a half into her stay, her father organised for the three of them to go on a tour of the local vineyards. He realised, perhaps, that Blair needed something, anything, to stop her thinking so much about whatever had happened before she had arrived, whatever it was that she wouldn't speak to him about that had resulted in her landing on his doorstep a full week earlier than expected. At one point during the tour, when her father and Roman had been laughing amongst themselves, the cute young tour guide had turned his attention fully to Blair. She had noticed this, realised that he was flirting with her, but even though she found him attractive she barely reacted to his advances. It wasn't even because she was still in love with Chuck (which didn't mean that she _wasn't _still in love with Chuck, because she knew deep down that she was and that it would take longer than this to get over him) but because she was so _tired. _She felt like a shadow that couldn't quite muster up the energy to put on her mask of make-up and pretend to be her former self. She remembered the girl in the sailor-style dress who had been practically _glowing _as she packed her bags and joked with Serena. She remembered marching confidently towards the helicopter, a spring in her step, not so long before. She didn't feel like that girl anymore. She didn't remember what it felt like to be that girl, but she wished she did.

There was no cute sailor inspired outfit today. Instead she was wearing a plain black dress over an equally plain black turtleneck. It was basically the same outfit she had worn since she had arrived. It wasn't like she was wearing black in mourning, she just couldn't be bothered putting an outfit together. There were expensive looking carrier bags covering her temporary bedrooms floor (because shopping had always been her favourite form of anti-depressant) but as of yet her purchases remained unworn. It was almost like she didn't want to associate her new clothes with this lethargic feeling. Like if she wore them, it would attach itself to the clothes and spread, and she would never be rid of it.

But today was her last day in France, and her bags were packed and she was standing on the runway, and finally she had shaken the storm cloud that had followed her for the entirety of her trip. Maybe it was because she knew that when she landed, Serena would be waiting for her with a big sign with her name on it, which Blair would complain about and claim embarrassed her to no end, but deep down she would appreciate the sentiment. It could have been because she had made a departure from her recent uniform of black, and was wearing the deep red headband and matching scarf that her father had brought her, with her cream Burberry trench coat. It might have simply been coincidence.

But possibly it was because she knew that in just a few hours time she would be back in New York, where she could hunt down Chuck Bass and finally get some answers, even if she had to hold her nail scissors to his neck to get them. It really could have been any of those things. She couldn't hold back a smirk at the last thought. Revenge was right up there with shopping and party planning when it came to her strengths. She was ready for whatever Chuck could throw at her. She couldn't help but wonder if _he_ was ready for the return of Blair Waldorf.


	2. Chapter 2

I still own nothing, and I still appreciate any reviews! I was amazed by how many people put story alerts on this, it blew my mind... Thanks! And double thanks to the incredibly wonderful people who left me reviews!

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_'Run your hand over the gentle curve of her stomach and around to the small of her back. She moans and arches her back, pushing her body closer to you. Tighten your grip and hold her firmly there while you kiss her roughly until her body softens in your hands'__  
_  
It was a good thing this was second nature to Chuck Bass, because his mind was elsewhere. He couldn't have told you the name of the girl he was with or the brand of the expensive scotch he had been drinking to get himself into this state. He could have told you what day of the week it was, but only after a few moments consideration to think it through (The wedding had been on a Sunday. It had been exactly a week after that that he was _meant _to catch a plane to Tuscany. It had been 23 days since the Monday Blair had found out that he wasn't coming and had left angry voice mail messages for him. 23 days since he had last heard anything from her. Which made today... a Wednsday? Yes, that sounded right...). He could only concentrate on one thing at the moment, the very thing that was distracting him from the distractions that he was currently using to distract himself from what it was that was distracting him from his distractions. Just thinking about it made his head spin, and he couldn't think of anything else, so he tried very hard not to think at all.

It came to Chuck's attention that the girl that was still pinned beneath him was now reaching for his shirt, using her long, skilled fingers to un-hook his buttons. He didn't fell triumph at his latest conquest, or aroused by her near-naked body sprawled out beneath him. He didn't even feel guilty, not anymore. He didn't feel anything really. He had the alcohol to thank for that. And because he had gotten rid of those _feelings _he could finally get back to doing what he did best...

He moved in closer, trapping her hands against his chest, and kissed her with dangerous ferocity. He felt her gasp with pleasure, but it was accompanied by none of the satisfaction he usually experienced when he had a girl at his mercy like this. She finished with his buttons and slid his shirt off, pausing only to shoot him a sultry smile. He was close, so close; to letting go completely of everything that was holding him back... And yet he couldn't help but feel relived when their progress was interrupted by a loud beeping sound to his left, which startled her enough to make her sit up and push him off her.

The sound of his mobile phone going off had a sobering effect on him, jerking him out of his dreamlike state and back into reality. The thoughts and feelings he had been trying so hard to ignore came rushing back and he quickly untangled his limbs from hers. Suddenly he didn't want any part of his body to be touching her anymore. He used his phone, still vibrating, as an excuse to move to the other side of a bed, putting more distance between them.

"You can go" he nodded curtly to the girl. Rather than looking hurt, she simply rolled her eyes as she pulled her t-shirt back over her head and marched out of the room, no doubt heading for the nearest bar where she could continue what she and Chuck had started with the next available guy. He wasn't entirely surprised to realise that, even though she had just walked out the door, he couldn't remember what her face looked like. Not particularly caring, he turned his attention back to his phone to find a message from Gossip Girl which was ironically about the only girl he'd slept with whose face he remembered every detail off.

_Warning: The B is back... Queen B, Blair Waldorf that is. She was spotted making her triumphant return to New York, arm in arm with her bff S and looking as though she didn't have a care in the world. You can't fool Gossip Girl B; we all know what happened between you and C before you left. If Chuck Bass weren't already M.I.A, I'd warn him to go into hiding. No one crosses the queen B without getting stung... Little J is proof enough of that. And remember last year, when the Ivy reps were in town and word got out about Serena's 'alcohol problems'? Although I recommend you stay well out of the cross fire, I can't wait to see _

_what B has up her sleeve this time. You know you love me.__  
__Xoxo, Gossip Girl_Chuck re-read the message three times, his eyes lingering sub-consciously on her name. So Blair was back in town. And even though he was the one who had messed her around, it seemed like she was handling it far better than he was. Not that it would be difficult... Even Chuck had to admit that cutting off contact from all family and friends, booking a suite in one of his fathers hotels under a fake name and drinking copious amounts of alcohol whilst attempting to revert to his womanizing ways of the past was not the best way to go about convincing himself that he hadn't made a huge mistake in abandoning Blair.

Just as he was trying to gather his thoughts together enough to formulate some kind of plan, his phone began to ring. As usual, he couldn't help the feeling that flared through him at the thought it could be her. It was somewhere between hope that she still wanted him, and fear that she had found a way to reach through the phone and strangle him. It wasn't her, of course. She hadn't called him since that first Monday when she had realised he wasn't coming. It was Erik.

Erik was the only person Chuck had spoken to during his self imposed exile. In fact, Chuck had called him on his third day alone, knowing he needed to talk to someone, also knowing that, because of what he had done, he had very limited options of who he could speak to. He had waited until late at night so Erik would be alone, he didn't want anyone in the family overhearing. Erik's initial response had been less than ideal.

"Chuck? What the hell?"

"Shush! Could you please not say my name so loud?"

"I repeat what the hell? You ditched Blair in Tuscany and then you disappear off the face of the earth? Serena is furious, Nate is planning on beating the crap out of you next time he sees you, my Mum is worried sick about you disappearing and your Dad... Well, actually your Dad seems to be handling it well. He's used to the situation, I suppose. He's disappointed though."

"Thanks for the rundown" Chuck muttered sarcastically, noting that Erik had failed to mention anything about how Blair was taking his desertion of her. _I won't ask about her, I will not ask how Blair is doing; I'm not that desperate... _"How's Blair?"

Chuck could picture his step brother's expression, a mixture of pity and frustration. "Blair's... I dont know. I think she's doing ok. She's in France, with her Dad. She's gonna kill you, you realise that, don't you? I always wanted a brother, and now that I have one he has to go get himself murdered"

Chuck had smiled at the joke, even though he didn't find the situation particularly funny. He wondered vaguely if Blair would beat him to death with her favourite pair of high heeled wedge shoes, or if she would simply hire someone to do it for her.

And then Erik had asked Chuck what he was going to do now, and since Chuck had less than no idea what the answer to that question was, he had quickly made up an excuse and hung up the phone. And now, Erik's name was still flashing on caller-id, and Chuck knew he was going to ask the same question, and he still didn't have an answer. Even in his drunken haze he could see quite clearly that he had screwed up everything. _What the hell was he going to do?__  
_

_  
_"Erik?" Chuck answered the phone sharply.

"I'm guessing from the tone of your voice that you know that she's back in town"

"I did hear a rumour"

"Consider it confirmed. She and my sister just came by here. They're getting ready to go away together, to the Hampton's, for the rest of the summer. I've got to go, but I thought you might be interested in knowing where she was" Erik said pointedly before hanging up.

The Hampton's. Blair was going to be in the Hampton's for the rest of the holidays. On one hand, that would make her much easier to avoid. On the other hand, now he knew where she was... There was something buzzing through his veins, the first real sensation that wasn't drug induced that he had felt since he had left Blair standing alone at the airport. He knew he had screwed up, but he had a chance to do something about it now, and this time he wasn't going to let it pass him by. Chuck Bass was going to win back Blair Waldorf. For a moment, he pictured her delicate face, twisted in rage, as it would no doubt be when he next saw her, and he couldn't hold back his trademark smirk. Yes, Chuck was going to win back Blair... And he was going to have fun doing it.


	3. Chapter 3

Ohh guys, you dissapointed me! Two reviews for my last chapter? That broke my heart a little bit, you know. I mean, I think this stuff is ok, otherwise I wouldn't post it, but it would be brilliant to get some outside opinions! Honestly, it would mean the world to me if you could just leave me a little, tiny review, it really would!

"Come on S, what about that one?" Blair sat up on her deck chair and pointed across the sand at a tall, tanned guy with brown hair and blue eyes that crinkled when he smiled in a way that most girls would find swoon worthy. Blair was not one of those girls. For some reason, she had an unexplained weakness for brown eyes and arrogant smirks, but that was another story altogether...

The guy had now noticed Blair pointing and was starting to give her a strange look. Normally, doing something so obvious would have embarrassed Blair, but here in the Hamptons she felt more relaxed than she did in New York. There was a feeling of being anonymous here that she never had at home. Besides all that, she was willing to try anything to get Serena to smile again, including embarrassing herself playing their favorite game from previous summers spent together here at this same beach, Spot the Hottie. Serena had obviously come up with the name because Blair cringed every time she heard a word like 'hottie'. It was so... Eurgh. Yet the name remained. The sacrifices Blair made for her best friend...

"Blair!" Serena finally reacted by grabbing Blair's arm and pulling it down so that she was no longer pointing at the confused boy, who scampered away as quickly as possible as soon as the girls attention was no longer directed at him. "What happened to being subtle?"

"Fiiiiine" Blair sighed, rolling the word out as though she were a whining child. She leant back into her chair again, making sure her hair was fanned out, just so. She carefully adjusted the straps on her silk Missoni bikini with its green swirls and its ruffle trim, straightened her tiny denim shorts and finally she fixed her large, rounded, celebrity style sunglasses, the white frames contrasting perfectly with her dark curls. Perfect. She glanced sideways at Serena, in her black Michael Kors one piece, the gold chain of the halter neck matching with her golden blonde hair and groaned inwardly. Serena made perfect look way to easy.

The two girls were silent for a moment, and Blair heard Serena sigh. She felt bad for her friend, but at the same time she appreciated it. If Serena was falling apart, Blair couldn't. She had to be strong for her friend. If Serena was handling her break up with Dan better then Blair wouldn't have the single focus of cheering her up to keep her from dwelling on her own issues. Having a best friend who demanded such attention was a god-send at times. She was the perfect distraction. Blair hoped that Serena would continue to be suitably distracting when Chuck showed up at the Hamptons. She knew him well enough to know that he would turn up, sooner or later, and she had better be prepared when he did.

As though she could read Blair's mind, Serena broke the silence by saying "Blair, you haven't said anything about Chuck since you got back. Nothing"

"Well, maybe there's nothing to say" Blair snapped with venom in her voice, annoyed that she couldn't avoid the subject any longer. "Maybe I was stupid to even care. He's Chuck Bass, after all"

"You scare me sometimes B, you know that?" Serena said conversationally.

"HE should be scared" Blair's expression turned fierce. "I will destroy him"

"Blair, he's not like Jenny. You can't socially destroy Chuck Bass"

"Who said anything about social destruction? I'm just going to destroy him. End of story."

Blair scanned the beach again; more to distract herself from her conversation than anything, but this time, instead of her eyes gliding carelessly from one beach bronzed body to another, her attention was caught by one guy in particular. And she wasn't the only one. Beside her, Serena sat up. "It looks like we have a winner" she said dryly, referring to their earlier game and lowering her sunglasses unabashedly to check this new boy out. He was tall, lean and tanned with long-ish, sun kissed blonde hair. He was defiantly, _defiantly_ attractive. He glanced in her direction and, as their eyes met through her sunglasses, she found her mouth forming the kind of smirk that would make a certain Upper East Side playboy very proud.

Not, she reminded herself firmly, that she was interested in him to get revenge on Chuck for god-only-knows who he had been doing since she'd last seen him. She had far better plans up her sleeve for revenge on Chuck Bass. And it was most defiantly_ not_ because she wanted him to be jealous of her being in a new relationship; because wanting him to be jealous would mean admitting that she still cared enough to give a dam what he thought. It was a simple matter of self-preservation. Chuck would, at some point, show up to disrupt Blair's peaceful holiday, and she required some kind of protection when he did. And this _extremely _attractive young man, who was now walking across the sand with a smile on his face that was directed right at her, was exactly what she needed.

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And, just for further reference...  
Blair's bikini: /product/31568  
Serena's one piece: /product/36180

Read. Enjoy. Leave me comments so I know what you think! Because not only is it nice to know that someone is reading the story I put so much effort into, I also like to know how I can improve so the next part can be even better!  
So, please? bats eyelashes pleadingly


	4. Chapter 4

Ok, I love you guys! Last time I posted a chapter, I asked for reviews,and I came back the next day with my fingers crossed, hoping for 3 or 4 reviews... And I found 19! Thank you SO much!! You guys are amazing!

Which leads me to the fact that I am not so amazing, as, dispite the reviews, it took me two whole weeks to get this chapter done. I hit a bit of a brick wall, what with all the new spoilers constantly coming out for season 2 and confusing me. But I'm done now, and the next chapter is already forming in my head, so it definatly shouldn't take as long as this one!

So we finally have some C/B interaction and the development of a real storyline. It does contain some general spoilers but nothing to major, except the inculsion of one character. So if you want to stay entirly spoiler free, then probaly best not to read it. Again, I would love some reviews to let me know what I'm doing wrong (so I can stop doing it) and right (so I can continue to do it!) Please?

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Chuck had not expected this. In all the possible scenarios that had run through his mind since he had first decided to go to the Hampton's to get Blair back, this one had not occurred to him. He had expected her to scream at him in a fit of rage, had been prepared for bruises and possibly even a scar, because he always seemed to get hurt when Blair Waldorf was involved, but never had he anticipated that he would find her wrapped in the arms of another man. She couldn't have hurt him more if she had kicked him in the gut with a pair of steel capped stilettos.

He was tossing up between walking over and beating the crap out of that guy who dared to put his slimy, disgusting hands on Blair (or attempting to, combat had never been Chucks strong point) or just getting the hell out of there before he did anything stupid, when Blair spotted him. He was almost ashamed of the way his stomach flipped when their eyes met. He found it amazing that a look _so_ filled with fiery hate had the power to bring his butterflies to life. Butterflies were supposed to be gentle creatures. Trust his to thrive in such harsh conditions. _Die, now _he commanded them firmly. They flapped harder against his rib cage. He supposed that butterflies were something he couldn't control. Much like the girl who caused them.

That very girl was now making her way towards him with a fierce look in her eyes, pretty-boy in tow. As they got closer, she leaned closer to him to whisper something in his ear, her soft breath landing on his cheek, and Chuck's urge to attack him grew stronger. He turned away from Blair for a moment and stared at Chuck, who was surprised by the expression on his face - It was a mix between confusion and sympathy. _Oh shit. What did she tell him? _Were the only thought that had time to cross Chucks mind before Blair was standing right in front of him, an insincere smile that didn't reach her eyes, which were filled with loathing, fixed firmly in place.

"Bass" she said coldly.

"_Blair" _he responded, emphasising his refusal to use her last name. He knew that if there was a time for backing down, this was probably it, but he just wasn't built like that and there was no way he was letting her call the shots in this conversation.

"Charles Bass" he said, holding his hand out for the other guy to shake, refusing to allow Blair to regain her control over this chat. Pretty-boy looked apprehensive, but shook Chucks hand and introduced himself regally as _Lord _Marcus, before shooting Blair a slightly panicked look.

"Oh, look! Isn't that Serena? Why don't you go say hi?" It may have been phrased as a question, but both boys knew that it was an order. Marcus scampered off eagerly to join the blonde haired beauty on the other side of the lobby, who was frowning disapprovingly in their direction keen to get away from the tense atmosphere that was building between Blair and Chuck.

"_What did you say to him_?" Chuck hissed as soon as Marcus was out of earshot.

"What makes you think I said anything?" Blair didn't even bother to conceal the cold, devious smile on her face. He knew it was because she felt no need to hide her hatred of him. He _wished_ it was because she was still interested in him and knew how much that look of hers turned him on.

"Blair, he looked terrified of me. I know I have quite the reputation, and I would understand if he felt threatened by my presence around you..." He paused for a moment to smirk, and to let the words settle on her. She glared in a predictable manner, so he continued. "But this was before he even heard my name. You told him something."

"I suppose I _may_ have let slip that you were psychologically unstable, with the tendency of having complete mental breakdowns occasionally that prevent you from functioning properly. It makes you do crazy things... You know, like leaving your _girlfriend alone in Tuscany when you were supposed to be spending a romantic weekend with her!"_ Blair spat, the pitch of her voice gradually increasing during the speech. Chuck's subconscious warned him to run away before she ran out of vocal range and was forced to resort to physical violence, but he stood his ground.

"Blair I... I... Wait, you told him I was retarded and he just believed you?" That wasn't what he had meant to say, but it came out far more easily than what he had been trying to get out.

"Well, he wasn't that hard to convince. Look at what you're wearing" She cast a critical eye over his argyle sweater vest.

"Picking on my clothes? Low blow Waldorf" She knew him well enough to know his weak points. It was sad but true.

"Anyway Bass, as _fun _as this little chat has been, I have other things to do. Like hang out with my new boyfriend for example!" She had clearly been looking forward to dropping this revelation since the conversation had begun. Even though by this point it wasn't really a surprise, it still took all of Chucks self control not to give her the reaction she wanted. However he couldn't hold back one last sarcastic comment.

"Well, you'd better get going then, wouldn't want to keep him waiting. Looks like you've picked a real winner this time around." The viciousness of the statement had nothing to do with the words themselves and everything to do with the way that he spat them at her. Blair's eyes narrowed to slits and she moved closer to him, all thoughts of acting civil forgotten. Apparently the closeness and the anger radiating from her was to much, the butterflies erupted again.

"He's much better than my last choice. I'm not letting this go Bass" she warned savagely. She was terrifying, Chuck thought. Her rage was disproportionate to her small stature. "I'd watch your back if I were you".

And with that, Blair turned on her heel and stormed away, her brown hair bouncing with each stride. If she had waited, given him a moment, maybe something would have come out of his mouth that would have been charming and clever enough to make her stay, but she didn't wait, and the butterflies were still affecting his ability to talk and so instead he was left standing alone with a sour look in his face as she marched off. There was no doubt that Blair Waldorf had won this round.

But as Blair reached Serena and Marcus, something happened that made Chuck see everything in a far more positive light. As Blair slid her hand defiantly into the other boys, she looked back at him. That tiny move was all that it took for the truth to hit Chuck. _She wasn't over him._ As long as she hadn't moved on like she was pretending she had, he still had a chance. He felt a little like throwing his arms out to the side and spinning around in joy the way Serena sometimes did when she was really happy about something, except that he would never, _ever _do that. Instead, he returned his self satisfied smirk to his face and went to find Nate and enough alcohol to make it acceptable for him to repeat the entire encounter to his best friend.


End file.
